Southern film industry can wait: Asin Thottumkal

MUMBAI: Asin Thottumkal is in no mood to return to southern movies – at least, not right now. The actress is comfortable in Bollywood and says she is happy to see how technology and awareness have brought the two film industries closer than ever before.

"I am quite comfortable here (in Bollywood). I’m getting to know the style and the language in a better way now. I dub for my films on my own now as I am better with the language. So it’s going great," Asin told IANS in an interview.

Asin’s next Hindi release is "Housefull 2", releasing April 5.

"I am still in touch with my Tamil and Telugu film producers. They have been missing me. But I have done a lot of those films in the past. I don’t think I am going to do a film soon there, but hopefully I will do something when I get a different project," she said.

The 26-year-old was impressed with the 2011 Malayalam film "Pranayam" and says she is glad to see the good content being churned out down south.

"One film I really liked was ‘Pranayam’. I won’t say that I felt like I should have been a part of it. But as a viewer, I really enjoyed it. It was a mature love story starring Mohanlal, and the performances were brilliant.

"The southern industry has always had a good mixture of stories. They have always worked on realistic stories, and I am glad the industry continues to do so," she added.

Asin was already an established name down south before she decided to step into Bollywood in 2008 with "Ghajini", a Hindi remake of her own Tamil film of the same name.

She made her B-Town debut opposite Aamir Khan and in her three years in the industry, she has already featured with actors like Salman Khan and Ajay Devgn. In "Housefull 2", she will be seen with Akshay Kumar.

With a slew of southern film actors coming and working in Bollywood and vice versa, Asin says these are great times for both the industries.

"There has always been exchange of talent between both the worlds. Bollywood’s female leads have worked in the south too. So it’s not new. But technology and awareness have helped the worlds come closer and be a lot more talked about than ever before," said Asin, who is confident Bollywood is headed towards better times for women.

"One cannot deny that there is a change. But I hope the women have stronger roles in the future. Cinema reflects society and that’s perhaps the reason for changing times. However, one can always hope more writers concentrate on writing female-centric scripts," she added.

For now, Asin is shuttling between the shooting of Rohit Shetty’s "Bol Bachchan" and the promotions of Sajid Khan’s "Housefull 2".

Despite a cast of 12 actors, Asin says she had "no apprehensions" about signing "Housefull 2".

"I knew what I was getting into and I am glad that I did," she said confidently.